Lack of movement is a global problem with an increasing number of us spending most of our days stuck in an office chair. Our human bodies were not biologically designed to be this inactive. In fact, for most of history, most people lived off the land, and spent their days labouring in fields, performing physically demanding work without the aid of any modern tools or machinery. Many of our ancestors relied on wells for water and would walk long distances to fetch bucket loads to carry back to their dwellings.

Today, many of us spend just as much time driving as we do walking, and can go through an entire week without having lifted anything heavier than a basket of laundry. According to a New Zealand Ministry of Transport survey, most Kiwis do not even walk more than a 100 metres a day! This disproportionate amount or lack of movement in modern society is causing widespread health problems that were uncommon in the past with the rise of illnesses such as obesity, occupational overuse syndrome, and coronary heart disease. In 2017, over 30.9% of adults in New Zealand were overweight, and 1 out every 3 deaths were caused by cardiovascular disease.

When we don’t move enough, our bodies become weaker and stiffer. This gradual deterioration can manifest in diverse ways from feeling frail to experiencing excruciating joint pains.

 

Signs That You’re Not Moving Enough

Here are some common signs that you may need to move more frequently.

  1. Stiff Joints
    When you don’t move, your ligaments become less flexible, stiffening your joints.
  1. Constipation
    Inactivity slows the movement of your bowels.
  1. Depression and Fatigue
    Good exercise and lots of movement stimulates your body and keeps your blood circulating. A low heart rate means lower blood circulation, making you sluggish and tired, and bringing your mood down.
  1. Backache
    Being in a stationary position for too long can make your muscles sore, and sitting still in a hunched position for a prolonged period of time can affect your posture, causing your back and neck to ache.
  1. Pale Skin
    Poor blood circulation compromises the movement of nutrients and oxygen throughout your body, affecting the pigmentation of your skin and lessening your natural glow.

 

Movement Training

Exercise is the obvious answer to an unhealthy sedentary lifestyle, however it’s important to understand that health issues such as backaches and stiff joints aren’t resolved simply by performing popular exercises, like running or push-ups. Functional exercises targeting your stabilizer muscles are more useful in improving the flexibility and strength associated with your actual daily motions and postures. For example, wrist exercises will improve the durability of your hand and fingers in typing, while core exercises improve your seated and standing posture so that you are less likely to get back aches.

It is widely recognised that there are seven fundamental movements that the human body makes; pull, push, squat, lunge, hinge, rotation, and gait (walking). Functional exercises focuses on conditioning your body to these daily movements in all planes of motion.

Our style of training ensure that you move well, look good and feel great.

 

Trouble Moving?

Flexa Clinic provides treatment and rehabilitation for those suffering from lack of movement and poor circulation with a personalized plan tailor made by experienced physiotherapists and trainers. We cover the basic needs of the human body for movement and allow it to thrive in an organic and functional way. In other words, our approach is not only to manage the pain and symptoms resulting from an injury but to correct the patterns, making sure that the fundamental motions are managed, and the body is at balance so that injury is unlikely to occur again. Book a consultation with Flexa Clinic here.